Collective bank by nour elhagi

A strategy to encourage more females to consider a career in senior management at Collective Bank

Summary The subject represented by women advancing into senior management positions in the UK banking sector is a contemporary exploration that addresses the effective use of human resources. Rather than look at this study from a female equality standpoint, it needs to be viewed as one of human resource use effectiveness and waste avoidance. As revealed in this report, female graduates are outpacing their male counterparts in obtaining university degrees and grade scores. By not effectively marshalling programmes to tap this area, the UK banking sector is ignoring an important resource. The competitive nature of the financial sector on a global, regional and national basis means that in order to remain competitive, the UK banking sector needs to tap all potential areas.

Table of Contents Introduction....................................................................................................4 Literature Review...........................................................................................4 Methodology...................................................................................................8 Results...........................................................................................................9 Discussion / Advice......................................................................................10 Conclusion...................................................................................................13 Recommendations.......................................................................................13 References...................................................................................................15 Appendix 1 Questionnaire............................................................................17 Appendix 2 – Questionnaire Calculations....................................................19 Appendix 3 – Questionnaire Replies and Graphs.......................................20

Figures and Tables Figure 1 – Historical Percentage of Women in Senior Management Positions.................................................................5 Figure 2 – Global Percentage of Women in Top Management......................6 Table 1 – Student Obtaining Undergraduate Degrees: 2011 to 2012..........10

Introduction In an article written by Pagano (2009, p.5) she brought forth there is a shortage of female upper management representation in the U.K. banking sector. Specifically, she used the Collective Bank as an example of an institution having a less than acceptable record of women being promoted to senior management positions. In referring to the bank’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) pronouncements, Pagano (2009, p. 5) stated the institution’s policies “… embrace fair and ethical trading, equality of opportunity and the promotion of diversity”. She pointed out this is not being carried out in terms of female placement in senior management positions at the bank (Pagano, 2009, p.5). In summarising, Pagano (2009, p.5) stated Collective Bank needs to address that it is not promtoing females to upper management and this seemingly indicates its CSR policies are more words than substance. To address the above, this report has been prepared to look at the lack of female representation in senior management at the bank and submit recommendations to address this deficiency. Literature Review In researching the subject of women in top management, Powell and Graves (2003, p. 62) identified stereotyping as a major hurdle to be considered concerning men, women and corporate cultures that need to be addressed. They brought up this observation because women who choose managerial careers have been found to have personal tendencies that are consistent with the profession, thus stereotyping is a moot point concerning the attempt to position women as not having the proper characteristics. Powell and Graves (2003, p. 53) add there is scant evidence to suggest or support that gender differences have a place in determining managerial traits. Ely et al (2003, p. 156) agree with this assessment as they stated “… traits that have been culturally ascribed to men …” have also been found to be present in women. The above traits are factors present in McCelland’s human motivation theory that states men and women have three motivating drivers which are achievement, affiliation and power (Perry, 2000, pp. 471-488). The point is, women have the same traits as their male counterparts, with

the only difference for each gender governed by the dominance of these traits in their personalities. This means there are males that as a result of their personality traits are not qualified to be managerial candidiates, just as there are women who are qualified for the profession. In terms of gaining a perspective on the percentage of women senior managers, a study by Grant Thornton (2011) revealed that for the 40 countries surveyed, women held 20 percent of senior management positions. Thailand had the highest percentage at 45% “… followed by Georgia (40%), and Russia (36%) …”. The UK recorded 23 %, which was equal to Vietam, and Armenia (Grant Thornton, 2011). To serve as a frame of reference, Greece was the highest ranked EU country at 30 %, followed by Sweden (27%) and Finland (25%) (Grant Thornton, 2011). In another report by Grant Thornton (2012, pp. 1-23), they provided a visual representation of the lack of progress concerning women cracking the glass ceiling. Figure 1 – Historical Percentage of Women in UK Senior Management Positions

(Grant Thornton, 2012, p. 4) The following shows that North Amercia and Europe are among the least progressive regions regarding women representation in top management positions:

Figure 2 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Global Percentage of Women in Top Management

(Grant Thornton, 2012, p. 6)

In an article by Burke and Vinnicombe (2005, pp. 165 - 167) they state research that suggests the obstacles and inhibitors concerning the progress of women into senior management is due to several factors. In listing these, mention constraints that are placed on women by society in terms of traditional views concerning their roles. This includes the views of parents and relatives that tend to see them as homemakers. In delving further into this Schein (2007, pp. 6 - 18) puts forth the observation that among the many arguments and theories as to why women do not participate in senior management can, in general, be summarised by two areas. She states the first is behavorial expectations (Schein, 2007, pp. 6 - 18). This is a real obstacle to upward career movement that is complicated by child rearing responsibilities (Schein, 2007, pp. 6 - 18). The second area is discrimination represented by policies and organisational structures (Schein, 2007, pp. 6 - 18). This usually consists of organisational cultural attitudes and informal networks which are dominated by males (Schein, 2007, pp. 6 18). The known and demonstrated history of inequality in corporate advancement and rewards for women represent hurdles that discourage them from seeking upper management positions (Schein, 2007, pp. 6 - 18). In a distressing development uncovered by the Institute of Leadership & Management (PRWeb, 2012) it uncovered in a survey of 800 women and men found that in the banking sector the “… male dominated management culture is the biggest barrier to women …”. The research uncovered that banks in the UK “… are unintentionally filtering out top female talent” (PRWeb, 2012). In adding to the above the study found the glass ceiling, as it applies to banking, is a result of long standing organisational and cultural attitudes as well as barriers (PRWeb, 2012). In terms of social attitudes, the study uncovered the use or application of enforced quotas to increase female representation in upper management is not a popular approach among women or men (PRWeb, 2012). One of the major aspects that resulted from the survey is that both women and men believe a shift in corporate culture will be needed to bring female upper management diversity to the banking sector (PRWeb, 2012).

The arena of workplace diversity concerning women is an important issue in the UK banking sector. In an article by Atkinson-Small (2012. P. 7) she refers to the â&#x20AC;&#x153;Women in Bankingâ&#x20AC;? report that found little has changed over the past decade. The article pointed out that getting to the top in the banking sector requires long hours, and demanding career paths that affect female representation in senior management. The suggestions and recommendations that will be put forth in this report concerning women in senior management are grounded in a realistic approach, along with a new trend that has taken hold in the UK. In an article by Silvera (2013, p. 9) that was published in the International Business Times, he reported the number of women serving on the board of UK banks has doubled since the 2007 credit crunch. In 2007 the number of women serving in a board capacity was just 12 % (Silvera, 2013, p. 9). By 2012 this figure had increased to 20 % (Silvera, 2013, p. 9). In explaining the above the chief operating officer of Astbury Marsden, Mark Cameron, stated "It is now widely accepted that we need a much greater representation of women on boards and at other senior levels within banks" (Silvera, 2013, p. 9). Marsden added â&#x20AC;&#x153;UK banks recognise this problem and they are gradually closing the gap. More effort is going into mentoring women throughout the ranks and making sure they take advantage of executive training" (Silvera, 2013, p. 9). Methodology The approach to the conduct of this report utilised existing sources and materials that were readily available. This indicates the significance of the scale and scope of the senior management equality problem as information was not difficult to locate. This research path was undertaken to reveal there is a wealth of information that can be easily accessed concerning the extent of the upper management diversity issue that also includes viable recommendations. Through a simplistic review of secondary sources, extensive details and potential paths to resolve the issues at Collective Bank were readily found.

Results The above developments point to a new trend in the banking arena that adds support to the recommendations for a proactive approach concerning increasing the upward movement of women into senior management positions. In a suggestion by the Institute of Leadership & Management it stated â&#x20AC;&#x153;Banks can boost the number of women in senior positions by taking positive steps towards strengthening and developing transparent management processes, measuring diversity metrics and better management of flexible workingâ&#x20AC;? (PRWeb, 2012). Kalev et al (2006, pp. 589-617) advise the approach to establishing programmes for the advancement of women in an organisation need to make the paths meaningful in terms of end results. By this they refer to companies engaging in a published and active plan of succession and the use of female diversity targets for upper management positions (Kalev et al, 2006, pp. 589-617). This gains validity in the UK when one looks at the university male / female enrollment and graduation rates. In a report published in The Guardian it stated females in UK universities have a higher rate of enrollment and graduation than their male counterparts (Ratcliffe, 2013).

Table 1 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Student Obtaining Undergraduate Degrees: 2011 to 2012

(Cabrera, 2007, p. 221) The above statistic has been used to reveal there is a qualified pool of female graduates to draw upon to make the implementation of internal career advancement programmes realistic. These statistics also indicate there is a large number of female university attendees and graduates that could be approached to make an internal career advancement programme viable. Discussion/Advice In terms of tactics that could be employed to aid in the advancement of women, Fairfax (2005, pp. 579-593) states that stereotypes along with preconceptions that are primarly male views of womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s abilities and career suitability is a major stumbling block in

corporate cultures. Burke and Mattis (2005, pp. 45-46) add to the above by advising that another inhibitor is the lack of access to line positions for women that is just below senior management. This area is where they would have the potential to demonstrate their capabilities and suitability for higher positions through bottom line responsibility. They add that another facet that has been identified is that in general many women do not undertake advanced career planning at the early stage of their university or work entry periods. By this Burke and Mattis (2005, pp. 45-46) are referring to women either taking the appropriate courses or planning their employment positions to increase their paths to senior management positions. In terms of tactics that inhibit the advancement of women it was noted they are generally excluded from the informal communication channels that provide advanced information on potential line management opportunities that lead to senior management consideration (Cull, 2003, pp. 159 - 161). There are also the actions or opinions of male co-workers who engage in counterproductive behaviour toward their female counterparts to sabatoge their career advancement efforts (Cull, 2003, pp. 159 - 161). In terms of approaches that can be undertaken by the Collective Bank plc to increase female representation in senior management, Hewlett (2002, pp. 15-19) advises that companies need to use their Human Resources departments to actively identify and track employees (which would place an emphasis on women) for upper management consideration. This could be accomplished by using employment review assessments and job analysis conducted as a regular part of employee reviews (Hewlett, 200, pp. 15192). Cabrera (2007, pp. 218 - 237) offers a more proactive approach by recommending that companyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s train or engage outside women mentors for their female management staff. This recommendation would aid women in planning, and strengthening career experience areas along with selecting paths that would aid in upper management advancement (Cabrera, 2007, pp. 218 - 237). As identified by Burke and Mattis (2005, p. 68), the lack of line assignment positions is a major inhibitor for upward career advancement as women frequently are not in positions 11

that have bottom line or results oriented responsibility. Cabrera (2007, pp. 218 - 237) offers a solution to this by suggesting companies put into place a proactive management path programme that rotates women into various line assignment positions that have bottom line associations. The above is what Cabrera (2007, pp. 218 - 237) states as taking calculated risks under a proactive diversity programme by offering visible and meaningful roles that provide women with needed upper management exposure. The Co-operative Bank should engage in career development and opportunity programmes where the Human Resource Depatment visits universities to talk with new students about banking as a career path. Through proactive recruitment, community engagement and post employment career path developmental programmes the Co-operative bank would be taking a major step in making its social responsibility commitment an active reality. As a means to gain a primary research assessment, a small scale questionnaire of 50 participants was conducted in London at the 3 Tower Place Starbucks location in order to obtain the views of women concerning management and banking. Permission ws obtained from the locationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s manager to use a table for the sessions where questionnaires could be passed out. A stock of pastries was purchased from the store at a bulk price to serve as an inducement for participation. The location was selected because it is in a busy district that offers a more upscale dermographic traffic pattern. A Likert Scale questionnaire was used as this approach is well suited to obtaining opinions (Carifio and Perla, 2007, pp. 106-116). A total of 13 questions were asked, with three of these representing inquiries concerning age, employment type and educational level. The survey used females as it sought to gather their views as this report contains a secondary study conducted by Institute of Leadership & Management that consisted of 800 men and women (PRWeb, 2012). The Appendix reveals the questionnaire and participant replies, where the respondents overwhelming agreed there are hinderances and limitations in the workplace concerning advancement to higher managerial levels (questions 5, 6, 7, 11 and 13). In terms of steroetyping and negative attitibutes, the responses indicated women think they are

being typecast (questions 4, 8, 9, 10 and 12). In terms of industry sectors the respondents thought offered the best career advancement to top management, advertising was overwhelming selected when compared to banking and the hotel sectors (see Appendix 3). Conclusion In delving into the low percentage of women represented in senior management positions, it was found the country and the sector significantly lags behind other nations in this regard. This seemingly points to a lack of progressive thinking and stagnant cultural inhibitors that indicate a wake up call is needed in terms of cultivating the country’s human resource outlook. As has been uncovered throughout human history, cultural diversity has represented an important catalyst for developing new ideas, approaches and innovation. The views and opinions that different perspectives bring to the corporate arena serve as an important base to understand changing trends and views of society. The financial sector is essentially a service business that is dependent on people as clients, and customers. This being the case, it is essential that banking open its thinking to a broad range of societal inputs in order to keep in touch with the populace. With this as the case, the banking industry needs to position itself as a field that seeks, appreciates and attracts the best talent from universities and other fields in order to stay relevant. At stake is more than the position or reputation of a singular bank. The above has the broader implications concerning the position of the country as the financial capital of the world. This calls for progressive thinking and action that utilises mental acuity from both sexes. Recommendations In terms of recommendations, the Institute of Leadership & Management stated some of the solutions to increasing women representation in upper management means banks need to seek out the “… best and most capable people to lead their organisations, irrespective of their gender …” (PRWeb, 2012). In posing a number of solutions the 13

Institute of Leadership & Management recommended the following (PRWeb, 2012): 1. That banks put into place performance management programmes that are transparent and result in encouraging promotion based on merit. 2. That banks implement better diversity measurement metrics to increase the awareness of the board of directors, human resource department and senior managers concerning the shortcommings of past and current female promotion efforts. 3. That measures to encourage career development for women be implemented through internal programmes to provide opportunities for females to engage in higher profile positions. 4. The establishment of coaching and mentoring programmes for women to prepare them for the demands of higher management positions. In order to become more proactive, the Collective Bank should consider developing a university career recruitment programme that holds seminars on management and banking as careers. The order of the above words has been selected so that the seminar would seem less self-serving and more in the interests of the target audience. By putting together statistics and figures illustrating why a management career in banking, citing global examples, offers a viable route to top management, the seminars could be a source of new recruits. P.R. activity connected to such an effort would also help to expose the bankâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s approach on this issue.

References Atkinson-Small, J. (2012) More than just 'The mummy track': Why flexible working is the key to a diverse workplace. The Daily Mail. 19 March, p. 7 Burke, R., Mattis, M. (2005) Supporting Women's Career Advancement: Challenges and Opportunities. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar Publishing Burke, R., Vinnicombe, S. (2005) Advancing women's careers, Career Development International, 10(3), pp. 165 - 167 Cabrera, E. (2007) Opting out and opting in: understanding the complexities of women's career transitions, Career Development International, 12(3), pp. 218 - 237 Carifio, J., Perla, R. (2007) Ten Common Misunderstandings, Misconceptions, Persistent Myths and Urban Legends about Likert Scales and Likert Response Formats and their Antidotes. Journal of Social Sciences. 3(3), pp. 106-116 Cull, M. (2003) Advancing Womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Careers: Research and Practice, Women In Management Review, 18(3), pp. 159 - 161 Ely, R., Foldy, E., Scully, M. (2003) Reader in Gender, Work, and Organization. London: Wiley-Blackwell Fairfax, L. (2005) Clogs in the Pipeline: The Mixed Data on Women Directors and Continued Barriers to Their Advancement. Maryland Law Review. 579, pp. 579-593 Grant Thornton (2011) Proportion of women in senior management falls to 2004 levels. (online) Available at < http://internationalbusinessreport.com/Pressroom/2011/women_in-senior_management.asp > (Accessed on 5 November 2013) Grant Thornton (2012) Women in senior management: Still not enough. London: Grant Thornton Hewlett, S. (2002) Executive women and the myth of having it all. Harvard Business Review. April, pp. 15-19 Kalev, A., Dobbin, F., Kelly, E. (2006) Best Practices or Best Guesses? Assessing the Efficacy of Corporate Affirmative Action and Diversity Policies. American Sociological Review. 71(4), pp. 589-617 Pagano, M. (2009) Harmanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s call for more women at the top is bang-on. The 15

Independent on Sunday, May Perry, J. (2000) Bringing Society In: Toward a Theory of Public-Service Motivation. Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory. 10(2), pp. 471-488 Powell, G., Graves, L. (2003) Women and Men in Management. London: Sage Publications PRWeb (2012) Banking's male dominated management culture is biggest barrier to women reaching the top. (online) Available at <http://uk.prweb.com/releases/2012/3/prweb9268902.htm> (Accessed on 5 November 2013) Ratcliffe, R. (2013) The gender gap at universities: where are all the men? (online) Available at <http://www.theguardian.com/data> (Accessed on 5 November 2013) Schein, V. (2007) Women in management: reflections and projections, Women In Management Review, 22(1), pp. 6 - 18 Silvera, I. (2013) More Women on UK Bank Boards Since Financial Crisis. International Business Times. 16 September, p. 9

Appendix 1 – Questionnaire Survey This survey seeks your views on the subject of women in banking. The questions have been constructed to be brief using a reply box to check off your response. The time needed to complete this survey is approximately two minutes, and all answers will be held in strict confidence as no questions of a personal identification nature are asked. PLEASE CHECK OFF THE BOX THAT REFLECTS YOUR ANSWER 1. Age:

16 to 20 

2. Employment Accounting Professional Government Service

21 to 29 

30 to 35 

 Law  Student

 

36 to 45 

Over 46 

Administration Other

 

3. Education level High school graduate 

University graduate 

Advanced degree 

4. Do you feel there has been progress in reducing the negative aspects of the glass ceiling at upper corporate management levels … a. Strongly disagree  b. Disagree  c. Neither agree nor disagree  d. Agree  e. Strongly agree 

5. Do you feel that upper management positions for women is subject to corporate bias that is a hidden agenda … a. Strongly disagree  b. Disagree  c. Neither agree nor disagree  d. Agree  e. Strongly agree 

6. With regard to industry sectors that seem to have a favourable record concerning hiring women for senior management positions, is banking one of them … a. Strongly disagree  b. Disagree  c. Neither agree nor disagree  d. Agree  e. Strongly agree 

7. With regard to industry sectors that seem to have a favourable record concerning hiring women for senior management positions, is the hotel sector one of them … a. Strongly disagree  b. Disagree  c. Neither agree nor disagree  d. Agree  e. Strongly agree 

8. With regard to industry sectors that seem to have a favourable record concerning hiring women for senior management positions, is marketing / advertising one of them … a. Strongly disagree  b. Disagree  c. Neither agree nor disagree  d. Agree  e. Strongly agree 

9. Is the age old stereotype concerning women not being assertive enough one of the possible reasons for the lack of women in senior management … a. Strongly disagree  b. Disagree  c. Neither agree nor disagree  d. Agree  e. Strongly agree 

10. Is there a perception that women lack the necessary managerial qualities concerning delegation or other attributes that negatively impact them being considered for high corporate positions … a. Strongly disagree  b. Disagree  c. Neither agree nor disagree  d. Agree  e. Strongly agree 

11. The truth be told, are corporations simply not actively engaging in equal opportunity hiring and promotional practices … a. Strongly disagree  b. Disagree  c. Neither agree nor disagree  d. Agree  e. Strongly agree 

12. Are there too many barriers facing women on the way to the top (such as gender stereotyping) that inhibit them becoming senior managers … a. Strongly disagree  b. Disagree  c. Neither agree nor disagree  d. Agree  e. Strongly agree 

13.

There been progress in shattering or cracking the glass ceiling …

a. Strongly disagree  b. Disagree  c. Neither agree nor disagree  d. Agree  e. Strongly agree 

Appendix 2 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Questionnaire Calculations

Appendix 3 - Questionnaire Replies and Graphs 2. Age:

16 to 20 

21 to 29 

30 to 35 

36 to 45 

Over 46 

16 - 20

21 - 29

30 - 35

36 - 45

Over 46



Administration

2. Employment Accounting Professional

 Law

Government Service

 Student

Accting 5

Law



Admin 7



Other

Gov't



Student Other 11

3. Education level High school graduate 

University graduate 

Universit y

H.S 17

Advanced degree 

Adva nced Degr ee 12

D 24

N 20

A 5

SA 1

5. Do you feel that upper management positions for women are subject to corporate bias that is a hidden agenda … a. Strongly disagree  b. Disagree  c. Neither agree nor disagree  d. Agree  e. Strongly agree 

SA 20

D 27

N 20

A 2

SA 1

D 13

N 12

A 6

SA 14

D 5

N 3

A 5

SA 15

D 1

N 5

A 1

SA 21

D 4

N 7

A 6

SA 17

D 1

N 3

A 2

SA 19

12. Are there too many barriers facing women on the way to the top (such as gender stereotyping) that inhibit them from becoming senior managers … 27

a. Strongly disagree  b. Disagree  c. Neither agree nor disagree  d. Agree  e. Strongly agree 

D 1

N 2

A 2

SA 15

13. There been progress in shattering or cracking the glass ceiling … a. Strongly disagree  b. Disagree  c. Neither agree nor disagree  d. Agree  e. Strongly agree 

D 32

N 24

A 2

SA 1